Wealth in the hands of Indian individuals continues to grow: Karvy group

PUNE: Total individual wealth in India is expected to double to Rs 179 lakh crore in the next four years from the current Rs 92.26 lakhs crore, the third edition of India Wealth Report by Karvy Group has said. The report which the Group arm Karvy Private Wealth released on Wednesday said the firm expects the long term India growth story to be intact with the Indian economy growing at an average rate of 7- 8 percent over the next decade.

Though FY12 turned out to be a relatively poor year for the global and the Indian economy, wealth in the hands of Indian individuals continues to grow at a decent pace, the report says.

The report expects Indian equity to remain the biggest asset class in 2017. Nearly 28.7 per cent of individual wealth is expected to be invested in equities, the report says, adding that about 22 percent of the wealth to be held in each of insurance and fixed deposits. Alternate assets are expected to grow by more than three times by FY17, the report says.

Commenting on the findings of the report, Sunil Mishra, CEO, Karvy Private Wealth, said, "The Wealth Curve in India - Wealth plotted against time over the past 65 years - has started looking like a butterfly which has out-grown its caterpillar stage. The current stage is when the butterfly's wings are getting stronger. Indian wealth has a unique mix of asset classes and products - financial and real. Among financial assets, Insurance as an investment product has emerged as the unsung hero, constituting 20% of Indian wealth, after Direct Equity and Fixed Deposits."